Center sill for cars.



W. A. DRAKE & F. M. STEVENSON.

CENTER SILL FOR CARS. APPucATlo-u FILED MAY 21, 191B.

Eatenfed Jan, 14, 1919.

2 SHEETS-SHEETl O O O O dwmw m W. A. DRAKE & F. M. STEVENSON.

CENTER SILL FOR CARS. APPLICATION FILED ,MAY 27.1918.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

Patented Jan. '14, 1919.

Q N INVENTORS,

WITNESSES.

nary body center brace in the county of Trumbull a period of use,

CENTER SILL FOR CARS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 14, 191s.

Application filed May 27, 1918. Serial No. 236,904.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that we, WHITTLESEY A. DRAKE and FRANK M. STEVENSON, citizens of the United States, and residents of Warren, and State of Ohio, and Sharon, 1n the county of Mercer and State of Pennsylvania, respectively, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Center Sills for Cars; and We do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description thereof.

This invention relates to center sills for cars, and more particularly to a reinforcing center sill for tank car constructions.

The invention has for its principal object the provision of reinforcing members, which are secured to the center sill at a point where the greatest stress is received from the shock of coupling cars.

A further object is to reinforce such a center sill both vertically and laterally, so that it will not droop or sag at its outer end after or bend laterally, which has heretofore been the difficulty with the ordinary center sill.

A still further object is to provide .such a reinforcing means as will give sufficient surface or bearing to support the body center plate on the-bottom or under side of said sill, and Without necessitating the use of the ordias has heretofore been the practice.

Various other objects and advantages will be apparent from the following specification, the illustrations in the drawings and from the appended claims.

To enable others skilled in the art to which our invention appertains to construct and use our improved center sill, we will describe the same more fully referring to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a top plan view of a portion of one end of the center sill e bodying the in-- vention;

Fig. 2 is a top plan view thereof with the top plate removed;

Fig. 3 is a longitudinal vertical sectional view of the same;

Fig. 4 is a cross sectional view on the line 1111-1111 of Fig. 3; and

- by angle members Fig. 5 is a detail sectional view on the line VV Fig. 3 showing and its supporting Referring more the body center plate angle.

particularly to the drawings, the letter A designates the center sill as a whole, which is composed of the usual channel beams 2 and 3 which parallel each other. These beams are secured together and spaced by the top plate 4 and by bottom cover plate extension: 5. Body bolsters 6 are secured to the center sill inthe usual manner to support thebody of a car.

A draft gear B is mounted in each end of the center sill (only one end of the sill bemg shown in the drawings) and suitable draft lugs S and 9 are secured to the sill to receive the thrust of the gear when coupling cars. The draft gear B may be of any usual construction embodying the usual draw bar 9, draw bar yoke 10 andca'sing 10.

Reinforcing channel members cured to the inner face of the center sill primarily to distribute the blow received by the draft lugs through the draft gear when cars are bumped in coupling and to prevent sagging.of such sill, but other useful advantages will be brought out later.

Heretofore sills of the construction have had a tendency to droop or bend down at the outer ends, due partly to the eccentricity of the draft lugs 8 and 9. These reinforcing members 11 will serve to stiffen or strengthen the sill in a vertical and lateral plane and thus prevent the drooping or bending, While the draft lugs 8 and 9 are secured, as shown, directly to the reinforcing channels 11, and such channels serve to distribute or transmit the force of the blow received by such draft lugs when cars are being coupled.

Another and important advantage of the reinforcing channels 11 is that they stiffen the bottom of the center sill and provide sufficient bearing surface to support and securely hold the body center plate 12, thus eliminating the necessity for using what is ordinarily known as a body center brace. The body center plate is supported, or stiffened transversely, between the channels 11 12 which are secured by 11 are se-' ordinary approved rivets or other means to the bottom flanges of the channel members 11 and to the center plate 12.

As will be readil apparent. the invention provides for strengthening the center sill, ineans'for distributing; the blow received when coupling, and means for supporting a bod center plate. thus greatly improving the construction of the center sills.

It will also be apparent that various modifications and changes in design and detailed construction of the device may be made withoutdeparting from the spirit or scope of our invention and as defined in the claims, as various changes in design and construction would be apparent. to the skilled nier-hanic'in the art.

Having thus described the invention, what we claim is:

l. The combination with a center sill com posed of channel members secured together and adapted to carry draft gears mounted in each end thereof. channel-shaped reinforcing members secured to the inner face of said center sill at the rear of said draft gears. and abutinents secured to said reinforcing members adapted to take the blow received by said draft gears in coupling cars.

2. The combination with a center sill composed of channel side members secured together and draft gears carried in each end of said center sill. of channel reinforcing members secured to the inner face of said center sill at the rear of said draft gears, and draft lugs secured to said reinforcing members adapted to receive the blow from said draftgears in coupling cars, said rein forcing members serving to distribute the blow and to reinforce said sill on a vertical and lateral plane.

3. The combination with a center sill composed of channel side members spaced apart and secured thereto and draft gears carried in each end of said center sill, of channel reinforcing members attached to the channel side members and adapted to receive the blow from said draft gears in coupling cars. and a body center plate secured to the combined lower surface of said channel side members and said reinforcing members.

4. The combination with a center sill composed of channel side members secured thereto and draft gears carried in each end of said center still. of short channel reinforcing members adapted to receive the blow received by said draft gears in coupling cars, a body center plate secured to the combined lower surface of said channel side members and said reinforcing channels, and angle shaped supports arranged transversely between said reinforcing channels and secured thereto, said supports being adapted to strengthen said body center plate.

In testimony whereof, We. the said VVHIT- TLESEY A. DRAKE and FRANK M. STEVENSON. have hereunto set our hands.

WHITTLESEY A. DRAKE. FRANK M. STEVENSON.

Witnesses R. HUsKm, B. L. MoDowm. 

